As Leeds United's Under-18s celebrate winning the League 2 North Division title, Mark Jackson's young side can perhaps take inspiration from one of the club's greatest-ever youth sides on the anniversary of a famous win.

On April 23 1997, Paul Hart's under-18s claimed a 2-1 first leg advantage in the first leg of their FA Youth Cup final against Crystal thanks to goals from Matt Jones and Wesley Boyle.

Hart's charges finished the job in the second leg and it meant that one part of Howard Wilkinson's masterplan for the club was coming to fruition.

As well as delivering their third league title, the other tenant of Willkinson's legacy at was the club's Thorp Arch academy.

When Sgt Wilko arrived at Elland Road, he was a man with a plan, and that plan involved spending the next decade forcing a youth system to rival the likes of Barcelona's famed La Masia.

Sadly for the 1992 title winner, he was not able to hang on to his job long enough to reap the rewards of his ground-breaking endevours.

Wilkinson was sacked by Leeds in September 1996 following a poor start to the 1996/97 campaign.

But as the Leeds first-team struggled to hit the ground running after a summer which saw the arrivals of Nigel Martyn, Lee Sharpe, Lee Bowyer and Ian Rush, something special was happening in Paul Hart's under-18 side.

Woodgate was part of the Class of '97

The former Nottingham Forest winner had already lifted the FA Youth Cup in 1993, when the likes of Noel Whelan, Andy Couzens and Jamie Forrester saw off Manchester United in the final.

But this batch appeared even promising - and would go on to claim an FA Youth Cup win of their own, seeing off Crystal Palace 3-1 on aggregate, before several of the team would graduate into David O'Leary's young side which would end up flying too close to the sun.

But more than 20 years on, where are the members of that win over Palace now?

1. Paul Robinson

Robinson made his Leeds debut as a teenager

One of the Class of '97's leading lights, Robinson broke into the Leeds first-team as a teenager as he filled in for Martyn, notably in the Champions League, before Terry Venables handed him the No.1 shirt when Martyn asked not to go on a pre-season tour following the 2002 World Cup.

Was sold to Tottenham after Leeds were relegated from the Premier League in 2004 after making 119 appearances in a Leeds shirt.

He became England's first-choice stopper during his time at Spurs, playing in the 2006 World Cup.

Robinson joined Blackburn in 2008, spending seven years at Ewood before a final season in football with Burnley during the 2016-17 campaign, after which he hung up his gloves.

Has recently been seen doing punditry for Sky Sports and last week criticised current Leeds No.1 Felix Wiedwald for his performance against Bristol City.

2. Alan Maybury

The Irish defender was not able to nail down a first-team spot at Leeds, with his compatriot Gary Kelly owning the right-back slot in the late '90s and early 00s.

After loan spells at Reading and Crewe he eventually joined Hearts for £130,000 in 2001, before following manager Craig Levein to Leicester four years later. Stints at a series of Scottish and Football League clubs followed.

He hung up his boots in 2015, by which time he had already begun work as Falkirk's development coach.

His time there ended in September 2017 and is currently seeking new coaching opportunities.

3. Jonathan Woodgate

Woodgate was a key part of O'Leary's team

Described as one of Leeds' 'crown jewels' by Peter Ridsdale before the ex-United chairman sold him, Woodgate was an integral part of the O'Leary team before he was convicted of affray in 2001. With the rug soon being pulled from Leeds' finances, he was sold to Newcastle in January 2003, before a stunning £13million move to Real Madrid in 2004.

Already injury-prone by this stage in his career, it would be a year before he made his Madrid debut - and when he did, he scored and own goal and was sent off.

"F*** me, what a debut!", was his reaction.

The injuries kept on coming and would later be voted as Madrid's worst signing of the 21st century in a poll by Marca.

Spells at Middlesbrough, Spurs and Stoke followed, with the centre-back calling it a day after a second spell at the Riverside in 2016.

He is currently on the academy coaching staff as the Under-18s boss at Boro and has expressed his desire to move into management in the future.

4. Damien Lynch

Another promising Irish defender at Leeds, Lynch was never able to break into the United first team and left for Nottingham Forest in 2001.

A series of injuries, including shin splints and groin issues curtailed his progress and he spent most of his playing career back in Ireland before retiring in 2010.

He is now a pundit for eirSport and does other media work.

5. Harry Kewell

Harry Kewell exploded onto the scene

Another very familiar face.

Perhaps the most talented player from this crop of youngsters, Kewell had already made his first-team debut before the 1996/97 FA Youth Cup run and would soon become a regular, winning the PFA Young Player of the Year award in 2000, with big-money transfer offers from some of Europe's best teams coming Leeds' way.

He would leave in messy circumstances in 2003 however, taking a number of shots at the club before his controversial move to Liverpool.

Injuries began to mount though, the most notable of which seeing him leave the pitch in the first-half of Liverpool's Champions League final win over AC Milan in 2005.

His next move also angered Leeds fans, as he left Anfield for Galatasaray in 2008, before he returned to Australia.

He would retire as a player in 2014 and has now moved into management, where he has made a promising start to life in the dugout with Crawley Town.

6. Kevin Dixon

The English midfielder failed to break into the first-team set-up at Leeds and after a quick tour of Yorkshire clubs York, Barnsley and Doncaster, would head into the non-league.

Injuries were again to blame for cutting short a promising career.

7. Tommy Knarvik

Norwegian midfielder Knarvik won this team's Young Player of the Year award, but could only muster a solitary substitute appearance for the Leeds first-team.

His career then took him back to Scandinavia, where he bounced around a series of teams before he was appointed assistant manager of Nest-Sotra in 2014, before landing the top job at Stord IL a year later.

Is currently in charge of Sorta SK.

8. Stephen McPhail

McPhail was a member of the Leeds first-team (Image: REUTERS/Ian Hodgson)

Christened 'the new Liam Brady' by George Graham, McPhail had a decent playing career, but never quite hit the heights he once looked to be capable of.

He could never quite nail down a consistant place in Leeds' starting XI and was one of many players to leave the club following their relegation from the Premier League, when he joined Cardiff City, where he spent seven years.

He hung up his boots in 2016 after a spell at Shamrock Rovers and was then handed a role as the club's sporting director.

9. Wesley Boyle

Another very promising talent who saw injuries ruin any chance he had of making the grade at Leeds.

Speaking to PlanetFootball, Boyle recalled the bad advice he was given by the club after suffering a heel injury and undergoing surgery..

“Looking back I don’t even think I needed the operation. The surgeon said I’d be back in six weeks, but after having bone shaved off your heel that’s not going to happen.

“I just did what the club said, but I wasn’t even walking properly a year after that, never mind coming back in six weeks. They did the operation again as little growths were growing on my heel bone and they were having to shave them off again, which was a bit of a nightmare."

He would leave the club in 2002 and after trials at Rushden & Diamonds and Hull City, spent a decade at Portadown.

Boyle is now studying for a degree in strength and conditioning and coaching youth football in Ireland.

10. Matthew Jones

Made a handful of appearances for Leeds before he was sold to Leicester City for £3.5million in 2000, where injuries would hold him back. He did manage to win 13 Wales caps, but was forced into an early retirement aged 23.

He would then move into the media before lacing his boots again and spending two seasons playing for Llanelli between 2007 and 2009.

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11. Lee Matthews

The Middlesbrough-born forward could only muster a few substitute appearances for Leeds' first-team and soon took off an a career that saw him bounce around a series of clubs in the lower leagues before he called it a day after a spell with Livingston in 2007.

Is now part of sports agent firm Sport Management International, who have the likes of Robert Snodgrass, Stewart Downing and Ben Gibson on their books.